There is a fabulous fishery along the Massachusetts coast north of Boston that produces striped bass from 18 to 40 inches (35-40 pounds). The prime times are from early June through the first week of July and early September until the first week of October, depending on the water temperature in a given year. I've enjoyed days of superior fly angling for striped bass without having to go as far as Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket.
While visiting friends near Manchester, MA, I booked both shore (wading) and boat trips operated by Captains Chris and Doug Maxfield owners of Flies Down Charters, (Tel. 978-884-2473, email: dougmaxfield@aol.com). These captains can also be located through First Light Anglers (see below). There are accessible wading spots from Newburyport to the Boston Harbor, but I concentrated between Plum Island and Beverly. We took fish in the 22- to 30-inch range (30 inches was a keeper in Massachusetts in 2000), casting from Crane's Beach, Halibut Point, the estuary of the Essex River, the rocks at Magnolia Point, West Beach (Manchester), Pride's Beach and -- at low tide -- the marshy flats near Beverly. These spots are only the tip of the iceberg in an area where access is harder to find than fish. Each spot fishes differently on various tides and you will need a guide to inform you.
As a Chesapeake Bay area resident, I'd never had an opportunity to cast for what we Marylanders call "rockfish" until the North Shore trip. I found it very rewarding. It is harder than fishing from a boat, requiring longer casts as far beyond the waves as you can shoot a line, and once you're into a fish you know it was you who found him and he's all yours to land!
In addition to the wade trips, we fished from a 24-foot center console during the first week of September. The fish were beginning to turn on as the water cooled prior to the migration south. These fish hang around some of the most beautiful structure and variegated seascape in the Northeast. There are islands and estuaries, beaches and rocky points - all producing good numbers of keeper striped bass and even more takers between 18 and 24 inches. Captain Doug Maxfield located fish for us near the mouth of the Annasquam River, in the Essex River and in Plum Island Sound.
Despite the challenge and the beauty of these fishing days, it must be noted that stripers along the North Shore can be very inconsistent, showing up one place one day but not the next and back on the third. They follow the bait up and down the structure-rich shore. There were many breaking fish, mostly smaller than the keepers that lie lower in the water column. However, I've seen pictures of a spot about 10 miles offshore that holds large fish (30-inch plus keepers) that break on the surface. The area mentioned can be reached by car from Boston in about 45 minutes to one hour, or by commuter train which brings you close enough for your guide to meet you. (Train travel takes somewhat longer.)
The Maxfields and First Light Anglers recommend nine-foot rods with the backbone to shoot through a strong wind. I found my Winston nine-foot/eight-weight effective. When the wind got nearly intolerable, I switched to a nine-foot/10 weight. Effective flies will imitate small menhaden ("peanut bunker"), silversides, and small herring. Popular flies include: Pugliesi's Yak hair bunker, R.M. Flatsides, Crease flies, Clouser minnows in gray/white and chartreuse/white, and small Deceivers.
Rates for the guided fishing are $450 for a full day, $275 for a half-day (one tide). Shore (wading) trips are $275 for four hours (one tide). Other guides in the area with whom I've fished or observed at close quarters are First Light Anglers, Manchester, MA. Ask for Captain Nat Moody or Derek Spingler (Tel. 978-526-4477; dereks@shore.net or www.first-light-anglers.com). Another operator to consider is On Line Fishing Charters, also based in Manchester. Ask for Captain Danny Warrington or John Pirie (Tel. 978-468-1314). Other nearby shops that can provide you with tackle, flies and the names of additional guides include River's Edge Trading in Beverly, MA (Tel. 978-921-8008) and Stoddard's Inc. in Boston (Tel. 617-426-4187).
